


Foe

by Blackghost7



Category: NCIS
Genre: Getting Together, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-09
Updated: 2015-06-09
Packaged: 2018-04-03 16:26:57
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,160
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4107454
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Blackghost7/pseuds/Blackghost7
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony faces a truly terrible foe… Can Gibbs save him?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Foe

Tony groaned as he removed his super secret reading glasses and rubbed his hands over his face, then pinched the bridge of his nose. Squinting, he barely managed to make out the time on his watch. Just over 3.30 AM. Great. If he went to bed now, he would get three hours of sleep before he had to go to work again. He was tired through and through, and quietly getting desperate. It was his own fault of course, and he knew it, and that just made him angrier with himself, but he had held on to the hope that it was a joke. But unlike that time with Dorneget – and he felt a sharp pang of loss at the memory of the brave young Agent – this time it turned out to be real. Tony was being audited.  
   
When he had finally admitted to himself that it wasn’t a joke and this was really happening, it had already been too late. He had only a week left to prepare and bring his paperwork in order, and he wasted the first evening of that week trying to find an accountant who would be able and willing to help him on such short notice, but none of his contacts had been able to help. So the next evening, he had settled at his dining room table and started work. But three years worth of paperwork wasn’t easily sorted, and by the time he had given up and gone to bed deep in the night, he had only sorted through a disappointingly small part of the stack of papers. The entire week he had been working until the early morning hours, but the end was nowhere near in sight yet. Thank heavens today was Friday and they had the weekend off, so he had two more days to try and figure everything out before the audit started on Monday. But looking at the still jumbled mess of papers strewn across the table, he was losing hope.  
   
Of course, Tony overslept that morning. Gibbs glared at him when he rushed into the bullpen, luckily only a few minutes late, and Tony smiled apologetically. They were working cold cases for which Tony was grateful, because if he had been late while they were on an active case, Gibbs would have chewed him out with more than just a glare. On the other hand, cold cases meant paperwork, and he was really getting sick of paperwork by now. By midmorning, his sleepless nights and the lack of adrenaline from being stuck on cold cases was catching up with him, and while he managed to stifle the first few yawns, eventually one slipped out.  
   
“Cold cases too for boring you, DiNozzo?”  
   
Tony shook his head without looking at Gibbs.  
   
“Don’t think they deserve our undivided attention? That the victims don’t deserve closure?”  
   
“Of course they do, Boss. Sorry, Boss.”  
   
Gibbs huffed and went for coffee. Tony was both surprised and grateful when Gibbs plunked a large cup of coffee on Tony’s desk when he returned. He didn’t think the coffee would help, he’d had far too much of the stuff already over the past week, but it was a rarely nice gesture from Gibbs. Unfortunately, Tony had been right. The coffee didn’t help.  
   
“DiNozzo!”  
   
The sharp bark from Gibbs woke him immediately, and Tony’s bleary eyes quickly tried to survey his surroundings. The bullpen. Open file on his desk, a small puddle of drool covering the corner of the top page. Gibbs standing in front of his desk, looking part annoyed and part amused. Tony was just thankful that there was no sign of McGee or Bishop to witness his embarrassment. He heard a small sigh from Gibbs, but before he could apologize again, Gibbs spoke, a little gentler this time.  
   
“With me, DiNozzo.”  
   
Stifling a sigh and another yawn, Tony tried to stretch his exhausted limbs surreptitiously as he followed Gibbs to the elevator. When the doors closed behind them and the switch was flipped, Tony leaned against the wall and rubbed his hands over his face again. Gibbs just stared at him for a few moments, taking in the dark circles under Tony’s eyes that he had seen grow steadily worse as the week progressed, and sipped at his coffee. Gibbs’ tone was suspiciously kind, and Tony had to suppress a shiver, in part because he always loved it when Gibbs spoke to him like this, in part because it always worried him what would come next.  
   
“What’s going on, Tony?”  
   
This time Tony did sigh.  
   
“Can I help?”  
   
The soft offer of assistance, even without Gibbs knowing what it was about, warmed Tony’s heart a little. Still, he shook his head.  
   
“I’m in trouble, Boss.”  
   
“What is it? What do you need?”  
   
“A miracle.”  
   
“What kind? Anything I can do?”  
   
Now Tony looked up at Gibbs and grinned, but it was a tired grin, and the amusement sounded forced.  
   
“I know you think you’re Superman, Boss, and sometimes you really are, but not even you can fix this.”  
   
Gibbs’ gut was churning now. What the hell kind of trouble was Tony in?  
   
“Just tell me.”  
   
After a deep breath, Tony tried to sound cheerful.  
   
“Know any good accountants with nothing to do over the weekend, Boss?”  
   
Gibbs blinked. Not what he had been expecting.  
   
“Why?”  
   
Tony upped the false cheer, and even raised his arms in a halfhearted joyful gesture.  
   
“I’m being audited!”  
   
Another blink from Gibbs.  
   
“So?”  
   
“The audit is this Monday, and I’m nowhere near prepared. I waited too long and then I couldn’t find an accountant and I’ve been trying to sort everything out myself this past week, which is why I’ve barely had any sleep, and my table is still covered in stacks of papers that I need to go through and there is no way in hell I’m ever gonna get it done even if I stay up the entire weekend and then I don’t even know what to do with all the papers and I just...”  
   
“Tony!”  
   
“Shutting up, Boss!”  
   
Gibbs sighed. It pained him to see Tony this desperate, but at the same time he couldn’t help a small chuckle at the reason for it.  
   
“You never been audited before?”  
   
Tony shook his head again.  
   
“Don’t worry, Tony. It’ll be fine.”  
   
At the soft reassurance from Gibbs, Tony couldn’t help but instantly feel better. If Gibbs said it was going to be fine, it would be. A little hopeful look appeared in his eyes.  
   
Gibbs saw Tony relax immediately when Gibbs reassured him, and he bit back a pleased little smile. Making Tony feel better always made Gibbs feel better too. Gibbs hesitated only a moment before he broke his reputation for being a bastard, something he found himself doing for Tony more and more.  
   
“Go home, Tony, get a few hours of sleep. I’ll be at your place around six, and then we’ll fix everything.”  
   
Tony stared at Gibbs incredulously for a few seconds, and then, mindful of the coffee in Gibbs’ hands, embraced him in an exuberant hug.  
   
“Thank you, thank you, thank you! Oh… thank you, Gibbs!”  
   
For a moment, Gibbs was stunned. Then he swallowed and awkwardly patted Tony on the back with his free hand.  
   
“Alright, DiNozzo, that’s quite enough. Don’t make me regret this.”  
   
Clearing his throat self-consciously, Tony slowly pulled back, feeling a small blush rise on his cheeks. He looked everywhere but at Gibbs.  
   
“Sorry, Boss. Ehm… could we just say that I’m really, really tired and very grateful that you’re willing to help me and that what just happened was a result of those two things?”  
   
When Gibbs remained silent, Tony finally forced himself to look up. The look on Gibbs’ face was a mixture of amusement and something else, something Tony couldn’t quite read. Then Gibbs’ face went blank again, and he nodded. Flipping the switch, they returned to the bullpen, and Gibbs sent Tony home with a few soft words.  
   
“Get some sleep, Tony. See you tonight.”  
   
After gathering his things, Tony shot Gibbs another grateful look, and whispered softly to himself as he stepped back onto the elevator.  
   
“See you tonight, Jethro.”  
   
*****  
   
If Tony hadn’t been so damn tired, he would have bounced in excitement in his seat the entire drive home. Gibbs offering to help him had lifted the weight of the world off his shoulders, and not only would everything be alright now that Gibbs was coming to his rescue, it also meant that Tony was going to get to spend time with Gibbs outside the office. And that always made him happy. He felt a small blush rise again when he remembered the hug he had given Gibbs in the elevator. He hadn’t been able to stop himself, he had just been so relieved. It wasn’t until Gibbs had patted his back that Tony had fully realized he was hugging Gibbs, and it had become a little awkward. But then there had been that look on Gibbs' face… Tony would have to think about that later, when he was awake again.  
   
When he arrived home, all he wanted to do was roll into bed and sleep, but the paper mess on his table caught his eye and he glared at it. Then he grinned at it and warned it.  
   
“You’re laughing at me now, but Gibbs is coming! And you’ll be defeated, mark my words! Gibbs is coming to save me from you, and guess who’ll be laughing then!”  
   
He shook his head at himself. He was taunting paperwork. He really was tired. But then he spotted the empty glass and bottle of wine he had had yesterday evening amongst the stacks on the table and he quickly whisked them away. If Gibbs was coming, Tony didn’t want to seem like a slob who didn’t clear away dirty glasses or empty bottles. Looking around, he took a few precious minutes which he could have spent sleeping to straighten up a little. When he caught himself thinking he should really run a vacuum through his place before Gibbs arrived, he stopped himself. With a last glance around, he shrugged his shoulders and went to the bedroom. Quickly stripping down to his boxers and t-shirt, hanging up his suit and setting his alarm, he finally rolled into bed. Seconds later he was asleep.  
   
*****  
   
Gibbs stared after Tony as the younger man left the bullpen. He was grateful that Tony had confided in him, but wished he had done so sooner, if only so Gibbs could have saved him all this anguish and the sleepless nights. He hated seeing Tony unhappy, and he sighed to himself at the thought. His feelings for Tony, which had been simmering under the surface for years, were getting harder to control these days. Gibbs wasn’t worried about being attracted to a man, and he knew Tony wasn’t either, because he had known since the beginning that Tony sometimes dated guys. It was the fact that it was Tony, his friend, his Second, his best Agent. That Tony sometimes dated guys didn’t mean that he would be attracted to Gibbs, and things might become very awkward between them if Gibbs tried to make a move and Tony couldn’t reciprocate. It wasn’t like meeting someone and getting rebuffed by them, there were years of history and friendship between the two of them, and Gibbs couldn’t lose that.  
   
He smiled as he thought back to the enthusiastic hug Tony had given him in the elevator. For a moment he had stood frozen in stunned silence, and then he had allowed himself to breathe deeply for a few moments and take in Tony’s scent, to really feel Tony’s strong arms around him. Then he had shaken it off, knowing that if he didn’t put a stop to the hug, he would give himself away. And the little blush that had crept up Tony’s face had been simply adorable. Gibbs shook his head to himself. He was getting soft in his old age.  
   
Even though Gibbs despised paperwork himself, the opportunity to not only help Tony but get to spend time with him had been too appealing to pass up, so he had gladly offered his help. And when Tony immediately started to look better, Gibbs’ heart had fluttered for a moment at the complete trust Tony had in him. The trust had always been there when related to work, but this was private, and that Tony trusted him there too meant a great deal. Tony didn’t share his true private life. He told many stories, but actually said very little about the things that really mattered to him, and Gibbs was honored that Tony was willing to share at least some of it with him.  
   
By four in the afternoon, Gibbs sent McGee and Bishop home, and after only a short hesitation, went home himself too. Normally Gibbs would stay behind and finish up, or spend another few hours reading reports, but today he decided to leave immediately so he could take a shower and change before heading over to Tony’s apartment. If they were indeed going to spend the rest of the night or even weekend together, Gibbs wanted to be comfortable. Dressed in jeans and a long sleeved shirt, he packed some more clothes into his go bag, then remembered to take Tony’s spare key. Gibbs was going to arrive earlier than he had announced, and he hoped Tony would still be asleep, because the younger man had looked dead tired. It would also give Gibbs the opportunity to do a quick assessment of the apparent mess of paperwork they would be going through.  
   
*****  
   
When Tony’s alarm woke him up, he looked around in confusion for a moment, but then he remembered. It was the afternoon, that’s why the light was different from what he was used to when his alarm went off. And then he remembered that Gibbs was coming. He smiled to himself, then stretched and got up, and padded over to the kitchen in his sleeping gear, yawning and rubbing a hand through his hair. He’d get a beer first, and then shower and dress before Gibbs arrived.  
   
Gibbs looked up and grinned when he saw a still sleepily dazed Tony walk blindly through the living room to the kitchen, oblivious to Gibbs sitting at the table. Gibbs leaned back and admired Tony in his shirt and boxers, the shirt riding up enticingly when Tony stretched out his arms and yawned, and thought the sleep mussed hair looked cute on Tony. When Tony returned from the kitchen, he almost did a spit-take when he finally noticed Gibbs at his table. He sputtered.  
   
“Gibbs! You’re here! Did I oversleep? Again?”  
   
“Nope. Got here early.”  
   
“Oh! Oh. Ehm… want a beer?”  
   
“Sure.”  
   
Hiding his head in the fridge for a few moments to try to cool off his blush, Tony groaned softly to himself. This blushing thing was getting out of hand. If he didn’t figure out how to stop it, Gibbs was going to find out things Tony didn’t think Gibbs would like. Shaking his head, he grabbed a beer and brought it out to Gibbs, who accepted it with a nod. It wasn’t until Gibbs looked him up and down with an amused smirk that Tony realized he wasn’t wearing much in the way of clothing, and there it was again. Damn blush.  
   
“Sorry, Boss! I’ll go get dressed.”  
   
“You do that, DiNozzo.”  
   
Tony didn’t notice the way Gibbs licked his lips as he watched Tony’s boxer-covered ass all the way until Tony disappeared into the bedroom.  
   
*****  
   
As always, they worked well together, and now that the sense of desperation had dissipated with Gibbs’ presence, Tony was able to concentrate much better on his task, making it go much more smoothly. Food had been ordered and consumed, and Gibbs had explained to Tony how an audit went, and Tony felt much calmer about it with every word from Gibbs. They had even started to have some fun when Gibbs started asking questions about certain dubious expenses and Tony relayed the stories behind them. After a couple of hours, Tony had stretched and said he needed a break, and after a short hesitation, sat down at his piano to play for a while.  
   
Gibbs listened to Tony play, and then just watched him for a while, taking a break himself too. He had never heard Tony play, and he was amazed at the skill Tony showed. Letting the music flow over and around him, Gibbs closed his eyes and sipped his beer.  
   
“Gibbs?”  
   
“Hmmm?”  
   
Opening his eyes, Gibbs realized that Tony was standing next to him with a fresh beer. He hadn’t even noticed Tony had stopped playing, lost in the music and his thoughts. He shook himself out of it and looked up at Tony, clearing his throat.  
   
“That was beautiful, Tony.”  
   
The beaming smile Tony gave him at the praise made his heart speed up, and Gibbs quickly took another sip of beer to hide his reaction.  
   
“Thank you, Gibbs. That means a lot to me.”

Tony settled across from Gibbs at the table again, but when he noticed Gibbs still seemed to be lost in thought, he started to reach out his hand, the movement aborted when he thought to himself Gibbs might find it inappropriate. Tony's voice was soft.

"You okay, Jethro?"

Tony didn't even realize he'd used Gibbs' first name until it was too late to take it back. Gibbs cleared his throat again.

"That third piece you played… It was Shannon's favorite. Kelly insisted on dancing to it at her first recital."

Tony looked almost horrified.

"I'm sorry, Jethro! You should have said… I would've stopped."

"No! No, Tony, no…"

Gibbs swallowed, and then took Tony's half-outstretched hand, squeezing his fingers lightly and giving him a tiny smile.

"Good memories, Tony. Thank you."

Tony squeezed Gibbs' fingers back a little, and without words, they went back to work.

*****

When at last Gibbs called it a night, they had an argument about the sleeping arrangements. 

"You're helping me out here, Jethro! There's no way I'm letting you sleep on the couch!"

Tony liked how he was calling Gibbs Jethro now without comment from either of them, and he tried to slip it in as often as he could.

"I always sleep on the couch, Tony. And if your bragging is anything to go by, yours is a damn sight better than mine."

"But you're my guest!"

"Guest?"

At Gibbs' curious look, Tony quickly amended.

"Friend! And I say again, helping me…"

"Your back would kill you if you slept on the couch."

Tony sighed. They knew each other too well. Then he gave a little daring smirk.

"We could always share…?"

Now Gibbs laughed. 

"I'm not sleeping in that tiny bed of yours with you. I'd probably end up sleeping on the floor anyway, with bruises to boot."

Tony's smirk turned into a grin, and he motioned Gibbs to follow him. When they stood at the bedroom room, Gibbs' eyes widened a little, then he schooled his features into his normal scowl again.

"You redecorated."

"Just the bed. Needed something a bit more grown-up, don't you think?"

Gibbs bit back a groan.

"You have company in here now?"

Tony eyed him for a moment, his gaze serious and fixed on Gibbs.

"Not yet."

The few seconds it took felt like hours to Tony, but then there was that small nod.

"Okay."

*****

When Gibbs woke up in the morning, he was closer to Tony than friends would normally be comfortable with, and his hand was splayed over Tony's chest. Carefully extracting himself, he made his way to the bathroom and started a shower. 

In the bedroom, Tony smiled. He hadn't slept this well in ages, and had been lying there pretending to be asleep for several minutes, just relishing the feel of Jethro's hand covering his chest gently. Jethro! He still grinned to himself every time he thought of his boss and friend that way, but he simply couldn't help himself. Gibbs had become Jethro to him irrevocably now, and he spent some time trying to separate the two in his mind, reminding himself of the difference between his boss and his friend, and ordering himself to keep that difference in mind. 

After he had heard the shower running for a few minutes, Tony got out of bed. Jethro would be wanting coffee, and Tony's machine was probably a bit much for him. Better to have it ready. 

When Gibbs padded back into the bedroom, sweats riding low on his hips and a towel around his neck, he was surprised to find Tony gone. After all the sleepless nights, he would have thought that Tony would be sleeping late. For a moment he wondered whether he should get dressed properly, but then he spotted Tony's clothes still in a jumble on the chair in the corner, and decided against it. Gibbs swallowed, raised his chin in defiance, and stepped out of the bedroom just as he was.

Tony sucked in a breath when Jethro emerged. The sweats hung low on his hips, and his chest was bare, his hair sticking up adorably after his shower and just a rough towel run over it. Jethro was getting older, but his marine background betrayed itself, and he was still well-toned and the silver hair was completely enticing. Tony suppressed the need to suck in his own stomach as he regarded the tight muscles Gibbs displayed, and that was even while he knew he was pretty to look at. Holding back a small sigh, Tony thought to himself that while he was pretty, Jethro was hard. And he longed to run his tongue along every inch of that hardness, explore it with his lips and fingers, and feel it on top of him, covering him from head to toe. Tony shook himself out of it.

"Coffee, Jethro?"

"Of course."

Tony smiled.

"Sleep well?"

Gibbs sipped before answering, even though the brew was still scalding hot.

"I like your new bed."

Tony swallowed. 

"I didn't at first. Now I do."

They both decided to let that one go for now, but Tony knew, knew in his heart, that there was something deep and profound happening here.

*****

It was late in the afternoon of Saturday when Gibbs sighed, stretched, and looked at Tony.

"I think we're done."

"Already?"

Gibbs couldn't help but think that Tony sounded slightly disappointed.

"You're ready. Remember what I told you. It's about confidence. Just make some noise about you being a Federal Agent and strange things happening to you in the line of duty, give them one of your infamous smiles, and they'll forgive you for most of the odd things you've tried to claim."

Tony found it hard to breathe for a moment. 

"Infamous smiles?"

"Tony…"

But Tony couldn't help it, the off-hand remark had thrown him off, hurt his feelings. That's what Jethro - no, Gibbs! - really thought of him? Hadn't Jethro - no, Gibbs! - seen through him at all? Swallowing harshly, Tony settled on the couch and clutched a pillow to his stomach.

"Thank you for all your help, Gibbs. I'll be fine now, thanks to all your advice."

Tony hesitated a little bit, then added his most scathing remark.

"If you want me to perform for you at the piano like a trained monkey again in thanks, just let me know. I'll come running."

Gibbs swallowed down the bile rising in his throat. Tony had just referred to the most honest and one of the most painful feelings Gibbs had shared with anyone in a very long time and turned it into an insult. For a moment, his anger rose, but then he looked at the beautiful young man sitting there in abject misery, an yet again, for Tony, he relented in his reputation of being a bastard.

Tony's eyes widened when Gibbs fell to his knees in front of him, knowing to had to hurt. 

"Tony… I'm sorry… I really am. I…"

Hope and understanding shining in Tony's eyes, he couldn't hold back.

"Jethro… No matter what, I love you."

"Are you sure, Tony? Because…"

"I know. No matter. We'll have some explosive fights, I'll bet, but… never forget… I love you. And you love me."

Gibbs hardly dared let his grin show, but he knew he was was right. As always.

*****

In the end, the guy who came round on Monday was reasonable and to the point, and only had a few questions. Tony answered them confidently, especially with Gibbs - no, Jethro - at his side, and within forty minutes the audit was over, and Tony had been supplied with apologies for having disturbed a very busy Federal Agent with such an investigation. Tony accepted the apology magnanimously, and couldn't wait to get home again, home with Jethro, home at last.


End file.
